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I don't really need to post anything on the book because Brendan Moody pretty summed up my opinion of the book perfectly.

The Ree B-story really did not work for me at all. Sort of came out of left field a little too late in the game for me and did not need another pregnancy in peril. Seems having Riker separate from Troi should have been enough.

I started reading this book on a Sunday evening and finally finished it at 2am Monday morning. I guess that shows just how much I'm loving the current Trek novels from...well...all the authors. Everytime I start reading one, I can't put it down until I've finished reading it.

One aspect that I love about the current interconnected Trek novels is how one author will produce a plot point and another author will follow on from there. One example is Ree's actions in saving Troi's life in the Destiny books is (I think) very nicely resolved here. The other the revelations about Lavena's past life, which changed how I perceived her character. The same goes for Cethente. I love how this novel fleshes out characters I really didn't pay any attention to before, and makes me care about and respect them more than I already did.

A few bits and pieces I wouldn't mind seeing future Titan novels explore: I'd love to see both Bralik and Dakal get the same attention Lavena got here. And just where exactly where is Melora and Xin's relationship going to go next? And most importantly, I really want to see how both Riker and Troi cope with being parents.

I just finished reading Over A Torrent Sea after promising myself I'd be sequestered and not allow any interruptions, and now I'm glad I did.

OATS is my favorite Titan series entry, hands down. It was much lighter than many of the current Trek Lit, but it wasn't ridiculously so. It flowed (no pun intended) wonderfully, and was very enjoyable overall.

I will say that the whole Ree subplot was a little much. There were some times when it felt forced, and in my opinion (YMMV, of course) those were the only parts that I did not really enjoy. One thing that was a little perturbing was his whole Prime Directive violation. Considering the fact that Sword of Damocles was one giant PD debate, and OATS also had some serious PD moments, for Ree to break it and then have everyone's reaction be "Oh, well no big whoop, dawg", and then to have the planet's society be arranged in a way so as to ensure that the violation was not a massive crisis, but a "Oh, hey, crazy stuff happened dontchaknow?" was a little much. However, that is merely a personal observation, and did not affect my enjoyment of the novel.

The best part, imo, was the end, with the revelation of the "baby space capsule". I just loved Droplet and the creatures there. I think I went "Awww!" more times during the reading than I ever have, especially with the revelation about Counselor Huilan (who I will always imagine as an even cuter version of Stitch, which is probably the intention).

All in all, a wonderful book, and my favorite Titan novel.

__________________

‎"Captain, we are being hailed. That is, if you don't mind...if it isn't too intrusive."

I've just finished the book and thought that it was very good!. I thought the plot was good, the Squales fascinating and the characterisation spot-on. The only negative for me was the science -- it was over the top and pretty difficult to understand. All in all though a very good book.

What concerns me though is the whole Titan saga. I'm getting sick of Riker and Troi getting separated and one of them thinking the other is dead and then, oh wait, they can sense each other, they'll be back together soon!

Also how many more times is Dr Ree going to go completely off the rails and do something stupid which will involve violence, kidnapping and/or breaking the prime directive?

I don't have a great deal more to say that hasn't already been said. I found Over a Torrent Sea to be an entirely delightful book, a refreshing gentle science adventure after the dirge and misery of recent storylines.

I think one of CLB's biggest strengths - aside from the hard science obviously - is the ability to hit his theme so consistently and thoroughly. I loved how every scene of Orion's Hounds touched on the theme of different people working together to make things better for everyone, which is of course one of the most basic themes of Star Trek - although no less important for being so.

In OaTS, that theme was simply the amazing varieties that nature and life will come up with up in order to survive and keep going. That theme was hit scientifically with the biologies of the squales and their hyper-deep cousins, and the wackiness that is Cethente's physiology. It was hit sociologically with the Federation's insistence on continuing their program of exploration even in the aftermath of the Borg attack. And it was hit emotionally, with Tuvok's emotional trauma over the death of his son. "Whatever happens, something will keep going and will survive and flourish, even if it isn't the same thing that flourished before." That's a wonderfully optimistic theme to hold to.

LapsedTrekkie wrote:

If I may ask, how do decisions on getting rid of recurring characters get made? Are they done at the editorial level? I was a little surprised to see Norellis mentioned as gone (not that he was a character I liked, but he was in the original book), and surprised about Hachesa also.

Yeah, also slightly disappointed with these. I certainly grasp your reasoning - it just feels like there were some opportunities that will now never be realized. Norellis had some issues that needed to be resolved, which could have been done nicely in an side-story somewhere. And while Hachesa was basically just a one-note joke, he was good one. Alas, Dave had already ruined him by teaching him proper grammar (boo!) I guess if nothing else it's good to have a proper name for the Tailheads.

I will say I'm glad to see the recurring characters you DID use get used. Torvig is a favorite of mine, but it was nice to see some more stuff from Eviku, Bralik, and Cethente. And T'Pel, actually doing her job, and well.

Torvig is just the biggest sweetheart, isn't he? So eager and cheerful and full of bright ideas. You just want to pat him on the head. And I agree about T'Pel being a wonderful, strong woman. Love her, considering how little screen time she's got.

Ktrek wrote:

Melora is also another one of my favorites and her relationship with Xin has been interesting to read and follow the growth in their relationship. It will be interesting to see if Xin can grow beyond his cultural restraints, or lack there of, to discover the joy and freedom there is in commitment to a relationship.

My response would be - why should he have to? Your phrasing implies that one-on-one monogamy is superior and preferable to the alternatives. Perhaps you feel that way, and perhaps Melora does too, but it's not Ra-Havreii's cultural norm. Why should he be the one to have to change who he is to fit in with her? Isn't that the point - to see how different cultures can work together without having to change what they are?

wahwahkits wrote:

Also how many more times is Dr Ree going to go completely off the rails and do something stupid which will involve violence, kidnapping and/or breaking the prime directive?

Well, unless I'm wrong, this is the only time he's done that, and even here there were mitigating circumstances. In Orion's Hounds he bit a Fethet's arm off because that person was threatening his crewmates. Understandable, and less permanent than other solutions. In Mere Mortals (?) he bit Troi, which might have seemed to others as a violent act but was actually a calculated move designed to avoid further trauma to mother and child. I don't see anything Ree has done as going completely off the rails - extreme by human standards perhaps, but there we are hitting that theme again.

Guess I had more to say than I thought I did.

__________________
What happened between THE SOUL KEY and DESTINY? Find out in DEEP SPACE NINE SEASON 11 !

^Wow, a whole bunch of comments at once! I'm basking in all the praise. Thanks, everyone!

And I can't really add anything to what lvsxy808 had to say. Except on the issue of crew departures. I figured that after the events of Destiny, some people would inevitably choose to stay behind to help rebuild or to be with their grieving families or whatever. I could've just limited it to bit players and people we'd never mentioned yet, but that would've felt like a copout.

__________________Christopher L. Bennett Homepage -- Site update 11/16/14 including annotations for "The Caress of a Butterfly's Wing" and overview for DTI: The Collectors

As for the lack of drama in the early chapters, that's kind of what I wanted, in a way. (...) I wanted this one to be a change of pace, a more relaxed and laid-back tale. I wanted the characters (...) go to an interesting new place and tackle its scientific mysteries for a while before anything really dangerous happened.

Worked great for me! I loved the first hundred pages because the characters were exploring, guessing and solving little puzzles. Reminded me of the first chapters of "Orion's Hounds" which I also loved because of the feeling of exploration.

Personally, I'm sick of Star Trek saying "we're explorers" but we always get thrown into action-adventures. There have been very few truly exploration-episodes and thus I'm ever so grateful for Christopher's TITAN-novels! :-)

Christopher wrote:

As far as your comprehension goes, I'm in no position to judge that.

Not being a native speaker, I didn't understand all of those fish names and fish descriptions. But since grabbing a dictionary every ten seconds (when Christopher writes detailed pages about the sea life) isn't my idea of enjoying a book, I could live with the general feeling of "hey, that seems unusual but exciting".

And for the first time, I enjoyed all those alien characters on the ship. Now reading "Full Circle", I'm kinda bored that so many main characters aren't as alien as in TITAN.

Sorry for the delay. I am about six months behind on Trek. Just finished the book today. I loved it! My first Titan novel other my exposure to it in Destiny, so I had a little difficulty in keeping track of the characters. I wish the appendix with the cast of characters was IN THE FRONT of the book, as they do in Star Wars. I was peeved when I finished the book and saw that. LOL.

The pure science had me totally lost but the loved the planet of Lumbu (sp?)

__________________
"I don't like YOU because you're an erratic nutjob."
--T'Bonz to Daystrom, which I mistakenly directed thought was directed to me until T'Bonz set me straight.

Just wanted to chime in here as a new guy and add my voice to the chorus of appreciation for this book. I just finished it myself after devowering all the Titan books (and really all the Relaunch books) in order over the past 2 years and I have to say I agree with most of the comments here (though forgive me for not having read the entire thread) - including the 'hard sci-fi' stuff (love the whole world that was built) and the laid-back post-Destiny pace at the beginning.

I also did at first feel that the Ree story came out of left-field but I grew to love it and it was totally made great by the Tuvok moment outside the hospital. I love the character of Tuvok and I've been saddened (in a good way) by his emotional meltdown over the past novels, and this felt so redeeming and so awesomely Vulcan in its stoic acceptance of even being emotionally damaged... I've read Christopher say he's been in therapy and it definitely shows with his courage and insight to have this character come to terms with this part of himself. Bravo, and really so much deeper than I could hope for in a Star Trek novel. Well done.

And I also enjoyed the echos of Tezwa in Riker's once again being put through the ringer on Droplet, as well as the struggles that Lavena had to go through to find her own maturity.

I loved Orion's Hounds, too ("what's with us an jelly creatures?" - great nod) also for really touching that sense of wonder and mystery in the exploration of new life and new civilisations. As much as I love good space politics and space war, impending doom, etc., its this strong streak of serious mysterious and aliennes that keeps me connected to the Star Trek experience.